


the god of ghosts and dreams

by glittering_git



Series: Ides of Drarry 2020 [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Enemies to Lovers, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Hades/Persephone AU, Inspired by Hades and Persephone (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), M/M, Muggle Technology, Underworld, liberal interpretations of greek mythology, sweepstakes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:07:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23725810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glittering_git/pseuds/glittering_git
Summary: As Lord of the Dead, Harry never expected to marry. Being forced to enter into a sweepstake for Draco’s hand changes everything.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Series: Ides of Drarry 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1723054
Comments: 18
Kudos: 196
Collections: The Ides of Drarry: A Drarry Game/Fest





	the god of ghosts and dreams

**Author's Note:**

> Everything I know about Greek mythology comes from _Percy Jackson_ and frantic google searches so take everything here with a grain of salt. That being said, I hope you enjoy this AU of these two lovely characters.
> 
> This was written for the Ides of Drarry fest for the prompt position #2: _Harry or Draco enters into a sweepstakes and wins something unexpected._ Thank you to the mods for putting on this fest ♥ Thank you to [MalenkayaCherepakh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MalenkayaCherepakha) for the outstanding beta work. 
> 
> Title is from Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem _Demeter and Persephone_.

“No, no, no, absolutely not,” I insist. “I will not get involved with another one of Lucius’ schemes.” The last time I had, things had not ended well for me.

“I’m afraid that it’s no longer your choice to make, Harry.” Blaise smirks. “You lost the wager—you pay the price.”

“It was the dealer's choice, so I’m at your mercy. Isn’t there something else you want?” I plead. “I can ensure that your favourite hero gets into Elysium.”

Blaise brushes me off. “That’s already a given. Please, have you been watching her? No, this is my price: you will enter the sweepstake for Draco’s hand.”

“I don’t want to get married,” I protest.

“I don’t think Draco wants to get married either, so I guess that makes two of you.”

“That doesn’t make this better.”

“I’m not trying to.” Blaise is unapologetic. Typical, really. What else could I have expected? “You know how things work on Olympus, Harry, even though you no longer spend much time up there.”

“And whose fault is that?”

“I’m not getting into this again.”

“You’re the one who brought up bloody Olympus.”

Blaise shakes his head dismissively and starts to turn away from my throne. “I came here to tell you that your name has been entered in the sweepstake. I don’t really care how you feel about it.”

“Fuck you.”

“Fuck you, too. See you in another century.” He gives me the finger and walks away.

~~~

“Wow, two Olympians in as many weeks, it must be my lucky month,” I proclaim as I try not to shift around too much on my throne. It must’ve been designed by one of my brothers for how damn uncomfortable it is. “And the big man himself, to boot.”

“I didn’t come down here to trade insults like a couple of school children,” Lucius says imperiously.

“If you stuck your lightning bolt any further up your arse, I bet I could see sparks coming out your eyes.”

This only serves to make actual electricity spark at his fingertips. But since we’re in the underworld, _I’m_ the one with the power. I hold up my hand and bring the darkness down around us.

“That will be enough of that.”

“If you’re done playing games, then we can get to the matter at hand.”

I gesture grandly for him to continue. He barely refrains from trying to call another lightning bolt. I tighten the darkness until he’s gasping for air. He glares at me and stops breathing. I sigh and lift it slightly—I can’t kill an immortal god, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have a little fun.

“I swear if you do not stop this instant, Harry, there will be consequences.”

“What can you do to me, Lucius?” I scoff. “You’ve already exiled me from Olympus, turned my family against me, given me rule over the least desired kingdom in the world. Just say your piece and get the hell out.”

“You’ve won the sweepstake.”

“Fuck off.”

“I’m not joking, not about this.” Lucius is angry, but this time it’s not directed at me. “This is all Narcissa’s fault. She didn’t want her precious Draco to marry, or ever leave her side, but I decided that it was time for him to leave. The sweepstake was the only way she’d even consider it.”

“As I told Blaise before, I didn’t want to enter the sweepstake. So there, problem solved.”

“It’s binding. As soon as you were announced the winner, you were married to him.”

“That’s not f—” I start to protest, but Lucius holds up a hand to silence me.

“I don’t care to hear what you have to say. Prepare for Draco’s arrival. He’ll be here in three days.”

~~~

Draco looks exactly as I expect. He is tall and lean, graceful as a king greeting his subjects. His white-blond hair is braided neatly, leaving sharp cheekbones exposed.

He gives me a once-over and immediately a sneer falls over his features. “Is this the level of formality I can expect to see from you in the future?”

I look down at my outfit and frown. I’m wearing a comfortable pair of jeans and a red jumper that doesn’t even have any holes. It’s not what I usually wear to greet guests, true, but Draco’s not exactly a guest. I had thought that wearing more casual clothes would make this easier on him.

“Yes,” I respond simply, hoping to stop the hostilities before they have a chance to really get going.

“Then I can assure you that I have not brought clothing that is…” he trails off, giving my outfit another look, “appropriate.”

“I really don’t care what you wear, Draco.”

“Well, maybe _I_ care what you wear,” he shoots back.

“Maybe you shouldn’t.”

“Maybe you should dress better.”

“This is my home,” I shout, my anger getting the best of me at last. “I’ll wear what I damn well please and I don’t care to hear what you think.”

“Oh, is that how this is going to work?” Draco asks viciously. “I’ll be the proper husband, always keeping my mouth shut, doing everything I can to please _mon amour_?”

“No, it’s not going to be like that. If you’d shut up about my clothes for one moment, I’d be able to explain.”

Draco mimes sealing his lips shut and glares at me.

I glare back. I’m extremely tempted to simply give into the childish behaviour, but know that one of us has to act like an adult.

“Fine.” I sigh. “I know that neither one of us wanted this.” I pause to give that a chance to sink in, for Draco to understand that I did not want this either. “I didn’t even want to enter the sweepstake in the first place, but I lost a bet with Blaise and this was what he claimed as his winnings, curse him.

“I also know that you didn’t ask for this either. So, to make this as painless as possible on both of us, I’ve given you a suite of rooms that will be yours alone. When we are done here, Kreacher will take you to them.

“With regards to our marriage, well, a consummation will not happen until or unless we are both willing to give our consent. Until then, we will make every effort to eat together to partially satisfy the bond. Is that agreeable to you?”

“I will never be willing to consummate the marriage,” Draco says haughtily.

“I did not expect you to. Is everything else agreeable?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No, and neither do I, but it’s the best we can do.”

~~~

After that horrible first meeting, things do not improve. I only see Draco at mealtimes, and he’s sullen and silent. Those first few meals we shared, I tried to keep a light conversation going, but Draco was having none of it. I soon gave up.

He’s careful not to eat any of the food nor drink any of the beverages I offer him, subsisting entirely from stores that he brought with him. I admire his tenacity, but wonder at its point. Someday soon he’ll have to eat my food or starve.

~~~

I’m making coffee in the kitchen when I hear a commotion in the hallway. I’m debating if it’ll resolve itself when I hear my name being shouted.

“Harry!” Kreacher yells again and I rush to join them.

“What seems to be the problem?” I take in the scene in front of me. Although much shorter than Draco, Kreacher has managed to wrap an arm around his waist and is preventing him from moving.

“He be trying to leave, Harry,” Kreacher explains, his voice straining from the effort of holding Draco. “I caught him sneaking around.”

“Kreacher, you can let him go,” I say, exasperated. “I can take it from here.” At his look of hurt, I add “Thank you for catching him.” This mollifies him and he removes his arm from Draco’s waist.

Draco straightens up and smoothes a hand over his rumpled shirt. It’s grey silk, which I can’t help but notice brings out the color of his eyes as he glares daggers at me.

“Well? Do you want to tell me what that was about?”

Unsurprisingly, Draco doesn’t respond.

“Fine. I can’t force you to speak to me, but need I remind you that you cannot leave my realm? Lucius’ powers bind you here.”

I give him one more chance to say something, anything.

“If you decide you want to tell me what that was about, you know where to find me.”

~~~

It’s late. I’m getting ready to slide under the covers when I hear a soft knock. Kreacher would never knock, so I go to open the door, already knowing who will be there.

“Draco.”

“Harry.”

“Imagine that, he speaks,” I can’t help myself from commenting. “Here to make fun of my clothes again?” I point to my pyjamas, which are a far sight more ratty than my other clothes.

“No.” He pauses, and I can see his throat working to get the words out. “Please, can I talk to you? I wouldn’t have come unless it was important.”

“Of course. Come in.” There’s a small table and two chairs on the right side of my room, so I lead us over there. “What’s the problem?”

“I’m almost out of food,” he says quietly. “And I know that it’s pointless for me to care about this—that someday soon I will have to eat your food, but I wasn’t ready for it to be now.”

“I did wonder at your insistence, because I knew it couldn’t last forever.”

“It makes it more permanent, you understand? If I eat your food, then I am truly bound here, body and soul. If I refrain from doing so, then I can hold onto the fantasy that this is all a bad dream and I’ll wake up once more in my bedroom by the lake. I’ll be greeted by the sun and spring flowers and my mum.”

He sounds so wistful about his mum that my heart aches for that warm picture. I haven’t had anyone I’d be that excited to see in millennia.

“I know it’s foolish of me,” Draco continues. “You probably think I’m some silly boy who only wants his mum.”

“No, that’s not it at all,” I reassure. “To be honest, I’m envious of you. I don’t have anyone like that in my life, haven’t for a long while.” That was probably too much to share, but I find that it doesn’t bother me as much as it should have.

“I am sorry to hear that,” Draco says, and I can tell that he means it. Maybe that’s why I say it.

“I know someone who could help you. She’s a river nymph who doesn’t get involved in the drama of Olympus and has always been friendly to me. Her name is Luna.”

“Oh, I know Luna. She’s one of Mum’s favourite nymphs.”

“That settles it, then. I’ll reach out to her tomorrow and we’ll figure this out.”

~~~

As I suspected, Luna is more than willing to help us out, especially when I tell her it’s for Draco.

“Oh, Narcissa will be so happy to hear that she can help him,” she exclaims. “And I’ll be sure to tell her how wonderful you’re being to Draco.”

“That’s really not necessary, Luna,” I say, putting a hand around my neck in embarrassment. “I’m only doing what anyone else would do.”

“We both know that’s not true,” she says gently. “You’re being more generous than most.”

“Well, if this one small thing can make him more comfortable, then I’m glad to do it. He deserves to have someone looking after him.”

~~~

Helping Draco get more food changes things between us. We still find ourselves bickering, but it has less of an edge. He’s more willing to talk to me at mealtimes, and I’m always eager to hear about how life has changed on Earth.

“You can really call someone on that box and hear their voice?” I ask incredulously, holding up the small, fragile _cellophone_. “You don’t have to rely on Oliver to send messages?”

“Yes, it’s really amazing technology,” Draco says enthusiastically.

“Can we try it? Can we call Narcissa? Does she have one of these _celly phones_?”

At that, a slightly pained expression comes over Draco’s features. “No, unfortunately we can’t. There’s no signal in the underworld.”

“Of course there’s not,” I say bitterly. “They’re always finding ways to exclude me.”

“It’s unfair that they treat you so poorly.”

I shrug. “I’m used to it.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s fair to you.”

And although that doesn’t magically make my situation better, I find some comfort in Draco’s words. It’s lonely being the Lord of the Dead.

~~~

Life becomes less lonely. Draco and I no longer bicker, but rather trade friendly insults. He still can’t stand my clothes; I can’t stand his sense of propriety.

I take him to my favourite parts of the underworld, places that no one but me has seen. We visit the underwater lake that is near the entrance to the fields of Elysium. The water is so clear that you can see hundreds of metres into its depths. Draco tells me it is similar to the cenotes in México. He asks if we can go swimming. I’ve never swam in the lake, but I figure it can’t hurt anything. I am the ruler, after all. We strip down to our pants and jump in, the water cool but refreshing. I have to force my attention away from Draco’s lean body.

I take him to visit my pride and joy of the underworld—my garden. Even though there is no natural light, I’ve created floating spheres that emit a soft glow, giving the plants all that they need to thrive. Everything that grows there has been carefully tended by my own hand, but I am most proud of my pomegranate trees. I pick one of the ripe fruits, break open its peel with my thumb, and bow low and offer Draco a single seed. He denies it, as I knew he would, but the blush that rises to his cheeks makes it a worthwhile endeavor.

I learn about Draco’s childhood and share some of my own personal stories. He tells me that he had a dog, so I decide to take him to visit Cerberus. I can tell he’s a little scared at first, even though he does a decent job of hiding it. But after seeing Cerberus play fetch with me, Draco becomes more comfortable. He even braves giving him a gentle pat to his flank once Cerberus has tired out from our game.

I begin to think of Draco fondly, as a friend. I think about how things might have been different had we met under other circumstances.

I don’t expect to wake up one morning and find him gone.

~~~

I call Kreacher at once, but he is of little help. He tells me that he didn’t notice anything was off until Draco didn’t show up for breakfast.

I stride down the halls to Draco’s suite of rooms, hoping he’ll forgive me for entering without his permission. Everything seems to be in order, each item in its place, his bed made meticulously. I scan his bedside table and realize that his _telly fone_ is gone, as is the bum bag that usually sits next to it.

It’s just as I’m realizing that Draco has left of his own accord that I sense someone waiting for me in the throne room.

It’s Oliver. He has a message from my brother. I am being summoned to Olympus.

~~~

It’s weird to be back. Although millenia have passed on Earth, nothing has changed on Olympus. Tall white columns line the stairway in front of me. Satyrs and nymphs lounge in small groups, singing songs and eating. Everyone stops and stares as I make my way up. I ignore them.

Once I reach the top of the stairs, I am escorted inside the palace and to the throne room. Lucius sits at the front atop a large marble monstrosity. He is joined by Blaise to his left and Pansy to his right. I continue looking around and see that about half the Olympians are in attendance.

I stop when I get to Narcissa. Standing beside her is Draco and he looks miserable. I try to catch his gaze, but he refuses to look at me.

“Harry, how nice of you to join us,” Lucius’ voice booms. “I would offer you your seat, but as you can see, it’s fallen apart due to neglect.” I look to the place where my throne should be, next to Blaise, and there is only scorched tile. Neglect, my arse. Lucius smited my throne, but I find that I don’t have the energy to care. I just want to go back to my warm bed and forget about this mess.

“I’m fine standing,” I say, moving towards the center of the room.

“Great, now that everyone is here, we can proceed.

“As you are all aware, I have called you here because there has been a breach of contract. I was alerted at seven this morning that Draco had left the underworld, which should not have been possible because it was my power that was keeping him there.”

Smoke begins to rise from his throne, menacing, proving a point.

“I immediately assumed that Narcissa was involved and so went to her. As I suspected, I found Draco with her. She wouldn’t tell me how she had done it, but the fact of the matter is that she went against my will and must now face the consequences.”

“You bastard,” Narcissa screams, getting out of her throne and running towards Lucius. He lets her get one metre from him and then erects a barrier between them. She stops short, but continues telling him off. “I never wanted to treat Draco like some kind of property to be won or lost in a sweepstake. I was already planning ways to help him escape when Harry won. This made it harder, because if Draco ate any food in the underworld, all would be lost.

“When Luna came to me and told me how Harry wanted to help Draco, I thought there was hope yet. So I set up a rescue mission. I won’t go into details, but as you can all see, it was successful,” she finished triumphantly. “And since the marriage was never consummated, it can be annulled. Draco can return to his life on Earth.”

Lucius hmm’d. “Can you verify this, Harry?”

“Yes, it’s true.” Although I no longer wish it was. “We never consummated the marriage. I was never going to do anything we both didn’t fully consent to.”

“My, my, how virtuous you are, Lord of the Dead.”

“Fucking rot in hell, Lucius.”

“Torture you for eternity? Why,” he spread his hands wide, “I’m already doing that, thank you ve—.”

“Then the matter is settled,” Narcissa interrupts sharply.

“Not so fast, Sissy,” Lucius says, and I can see Narcissa cringe at the familiar nickname. “The marriage was never consummated, true,” and here he pauses to look at me with such contempt, “but Draco can’t return to Earth.”

“Why not?”

“Is there anything else you failed to mention to your mother, Draco? Anything at all that would impact these discussions?”

Harry can’t help himself. He has to look at Draco, who is standing with his fists clenched by his side and a hard expression on his face.

“Draco,” Narcissa says plaintively. “Please, if your father knows, you can’t keep it hidden any longer.”

“I ate some of Harry’s food,” Draco blurts, and I’m still with shock. Why would he do something like that? We were getting enough food from Luna that he shouldn’t have been hungry.

“Why would you do such a thing?” Narcissa echoes, and I can hear the pain in her voice.

“Because I couldn’t leave him forever, Mum,” Draco explains. “I knew from your notes that you were going to get me out of the underworld soon and you wouldn’t let me go back, even if I wanted to. So, I ate some of Harry’s food, six pomegranate seeds to be precise,” he says, finally looking at me. His eyes are shining and I want so badly to go to him. “While technically, we could annul our marriage, I’d still belong to Harry.”

 _He’d still be mine._ The thought loops over and over in my head.

“But what about me?”

“You’re both important to me,” Draco reassures. “And since father is such a bastard, banning Harry from Earth and Olympus, I had to take drastic measures. Now I belong to both of you.”

A gleam enters Lucius’ eyes, and I’m reminded once again of why I hate him so much. He didn’t much care how things turned out, he was just happy that there was so much drama.

“It seems like Harry will be seeing Draco again, Sissy, and you can’t stop him.”

She opens her mouth to argue, but Lucius continues. “He ate the food. No one can save him from that. Besides, you went against my wishes, so you must also be punished. What better punishment than to take your precious son away for six months of every year?”

“Six months?”

“He ate six pomegranate seeds, so he’ll spend six months in the underworld and six months with you.”

Six months is much more than I was ever expecting, so I’m quick to agree. Narcissa is less thrilled with the option, but she can’t change anything. Draco ate my food. Draco _chose_ to eat my food, the daft git.

~~~

I never expected to find my home in the underworld, but when part of your heart belongs to its ruler, there’s not much you can do. Choosing to eat the pomegranate seeds was the best decision I ever made.

“Draco, love,” Harry says from my left and I turn to look at him. He’s sporting the most ridiculous bed head, his cheeks are flushed, and his eyes are shining brightly. “We’ve only got one more night together before you leave me for six months, so what do you say we make the most of it?”

I roll over and straddle Harry’s hips, bringing my mouth close to his ears. “To that I say, show me what you can do, Lord of the Underworld.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are ♥  
> I love making new friends on [Tumblr](http://glittering-git.tumblr.com/) and [Dreamwidth!](https://glittering-git.dreamwidth.org/)


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